Resources: Deaf children: Deaf, not isolated

With professionals diagnosing deafness at an increasingly youngage, early years settings are beginning to bring Deaf and hearingchildren together, as Estelle Maxwell reveals.

Choosing a nursery was not easy for Rachel Coppage. She wanted herfour-year-old daughter Meghan, who's Deaf, to have "a differentexperience of childhood deafness to my own".

Like all parents, Rachel and her husband Eric - who are both Deaf andcommunicate primarily by sign language as well as lip reading - wantedMeghan's early years environment to help her develop social skills andconfidence - they wanted her to flourish.

However, finding the right nursery to meet her daughter's special needswas a challenge. Fortunately, Meghan's experience at the Abbeywood daynursery in Kenley, near Croydon, has been positive. The staff have beenkeen to learn basic signing and Rachel has helped run two Deaf awarenessdays on site.